Christin Hamilton’s daughter found her outside the family home before investigators turned to surveillance footage and began searching for Hamilton’s son.
SEWICKLEY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Christin Hamilton’s daughter began looking for her mother on the morning of Aug. 30 and made a discovery that would turn the family’s Westmoreland County home into a homicide scene: Hamilton was unresponsive and badly injured on the front porch, where police say she had been assaulted for more than an hour.
The daughter called 911, and Pennsylvania State Police responded to the home on Herminie West Newton Road. Hamilton, 53, was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators soon identified her 29-year-old son, Jakob Korber, as a suspect and began searching for him. He was arrested later that day and charged with a single count of criminal homicide, according to the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office. Korber was denied bail after arraignment. The criminal charge remains an allegation, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
What Hamilton’s daughter could not have known when she began searching the house, investigators said, was that a camera outside had recorded much of what police believe happened. Troopers reviewed the home surveillance footage and said it showed Hamilton and Korber arguing on the porch before the encounter became violent. Police allege Korber struck his mother with his hands and feet and used multiple objects from the porch during an attack that continued for more than an hour. Authorities have not announced what the argument was about or a confirmed motive for the alleged killing.
The daughter’s account became another important part of the early investigation. Reports citing the criminal complaint said she told police that Korber had a history of violent behavior and had recently threatened members of the family, including Hamilton. She also told investigators Korber had been at the home the previous day. Those statements helped explain why she immediately raised concerns about her brother after finding her mother, but they remain allegations within a pending criminal case and do not themselves prove what occurred on the porch.
Police said Hamilton appeared to have been beginning an ordinary Sunday morning shortly before the confrontation. Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Steve Limani told local reporters that Hamilton had recently showered, was wrapped in a towel, had coffee and was letting a dog outside. The surveillance footage then captured the argument and assault, according to authorities. Limani said the violence continued for more than an hour. Despite its duration, investigators said Hamilton’s cries were apparently not heard by neighbors or by her daughter, who was inside the residence.
The fact that the daughter was in the house while police say the attack unfolded outside became one of the most troubling details described publicly by investigators. Limani emphasized the length of time shown on the recording and said Hamilton pleaded during the assault. Police accounts have avoided any need to show or publicly release graphic portions of the footage. What matters to the case, according to authorities, is that investigators say the camera documented a sustained encounter and gave them a chronology against which they could compare the physical scene and later statements.
After the assault, investigators believe Korber left the property. Limani said he changed clothes and walked away, and reports citing court records said police believed he later fell asleep in a nearby field. With Korber gone, state police distributed information seeking the public’s help finding him. The search continued for hours around the area as investigators remained at Hamilton’s home. Residents eventually reported seeing Korber walking nearby, police said, leading troopers back into contact with him later that day.
The arrest itself unfolded in view of a television news camera. Korber walked toward the area of his mother’s residence as police were still working there, and footage from KDKA-TV showed him kneeling with his hands on or above his head as officers moved in. He was taken into custody without incident. Investigators interviewed him afterward, and police said he acknowledged that if his mother was dead, he had caused her death. Authorities have referred to the statement as a confession, though a court, not police, will determine what evidence is admissible and what conclusions can legally be drawn from it.
The homicide investigation produced stark descriptions of Hamilton’s final morning, but her family’s public memorial offered a different record. Hamilton’s obituary said she was born Aug. 7, 1973, and lived in West Newton. She worked in sales at Home Depot and previously worked for Manor House Kitchens. Relatives described her as compassionate, down to earth and friendly to everyone. She was also remembered as artistic and colorful, someone who enjoyed music, played guitar and loved animals.
Hamilton’s obituary named her daughter, Zoey Greenwood, and son, Benjamin Greenwood, among her surviving family members. It also said she had been preceded in death by her husband, Christopher Greenwood, as well as her parents, sister and brother. Services were private, according to the funeral home, with plans for a celebration of life to be announced. The obituary asked that memorial contributions help the family with funeral expenses.
The contrast between the obituary and the criminal complaint is central to understanding the aftermath of Hamilton’s death. Police records reduce a person’s final hours to time stamps, evidence, injuries and statements because those details form a legal case. A family notice instead records the ordinary elements that existed before a homicide became public news: employment, music, pets, relatives and personality. Both records concern Hamilton, but they serve different purposes, and the allegations against Korber should not eclipse the life his mother led before Aug. 30.
Investigators have said little publicly about why Hamilton and Korber were arguing. The district attorney’s statement described the surveillance footage but did not identify a motive. Local reports said Hamilton’s daughter told officers about recent threats, yet authorities have not publicly tied those alleged threats to a specific reason for the confrontation. No reliable source reviewed for this report established that a particular dispute, financial issue, mental-health condition or other factor caused the alleged attack, and assigning one without evidence would go beyond the public record.
The investigation was initially described as continuing even after Korber was jailed. Limani said additional charges could be considered as authorities reviewed the case, although the district attorney’s public announcement identified one criminal homicide count. Early coverage reported a preliminary hearing was scheduled for Sept. 14. The sources reviewed for this update did not reliably establish what happened at that hearing or identify a subsequent adjudication, so that earlier date should not be presented as a future court event now.
As of the latest verifiable public material reviewed, the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s case page continued to list the homicide matter as current. Korber had been held without bail following his arrest, but the available material did not establish a conviction or final disposition. The prosecution therefore remains a criminal case built around allegations, surveillance evidence, statements from Hamilton’s daughter and Korber’s reported police interview, while the motive and later procedural history remain less clear in the accessible public record.
Author note: Last updated October 19, 2026.